A mash-up of musical styles

Wayne Bennett (centre) of Lotek Hifi has a strong production background.

Rodney and Wayne. Two unassuming names belonging to two of the biggest reputations in British hip-hop. You might well know South London rapper Rodney "Roots Manuva" Smith. But you may not know Birmingham producer Wayne "Lotek Hifi" Bennett who abuses and twists music styles - from hip-hop to reggae to electro - all in the name of innovation.

In the past the pair have had a close musical relationship, with Bennett writing songs for Roots Manuva's debut album Brand New Second Hand and the follow up Run Come Save Me.

While we'll be waiting a bit longer to see Roots Manuva, who play here on September 21, as a taster Bennett is doing a solo show tonight at the Turnaround at the Rising Sun on K Rd. He says he'll be back with his full band after the release of Lotek HiFi's second album, Mixed Blessings, in September.

The day we talk the in-demand producer, DJ and musician, is - surprise, surprise - at his studio, which he loves. Bennett admits to spending upwards of 18 hours there some days.

"The way I've got my studio set up is like a living room. Sometimes the band get a bit agitated if they're waiting round to do something but there's a DVD player and a Playstation," he laughs.

You can see why those who work with Bennett in the studio might need a comfy lie down, the man is obsessed with production values, and that, he says, takes time. He will tell you bluntly that until the production standards of British hip-hop increase it will always be struggling to match those of the United States.

"It's the technical thing that is lacking - you go to America and watch even the smallest budget hip-hop album being made and it will be made with exactly the same technical standard as any pop record.

"The way [British hip-hop] sounds has changed a lot. But the way it's made hasn't changed an inch. It's still, and all respect to all the people making it, it's still quite amateur over here. It's only people like your Blak Twangs, and your Roots Manuvas who are lucky enough to have a professional team around them."

He's got a good pedigree to spout off so expertly about all this. He left school "as soon as I could" and got a job at Rollover recording studio in London where he worked with everyone from Take That to Peter Andre to Leftfield.

"There was loads of pop, so straight away the mystique of music was stripped away because I was in these sessions with people who had zero talent held together by bits of technology and production - that's why, from a very early age, I knew what production was."

But his first love was hip-hop and during the 90s he joined a North London rap collective where he released records, mix tapes and organised parties. Then came the Roots Manuva collaboration until around 2002 when he decided it was time to do his own thing. After recruiting rapper-cum-toaster Earl J, reggae singer Wayne Paul, and Aurelius (the man with a very deep voice), Lotek Hifi released a self-titled mini album in 2003. It was a mash-up of styles including the sinister Voodoo Boogaloo, the upbeat ragga of Percolator and the dubby See It Coming.

"When you do a couple of tracks that are moody and dark, you want to do a couple of up-tempo ones, and you want to do a sad one," he laughs.

Simple. But Mixed Blessings, on the other hand, says Bennett, is an album "they've really gone to town on".

"There's big 48-track string arrangements, and crazy things like that," he laughs.

"When we had a bit more time, a bit more space, a bit more budget we just sort of thought, 'Let's see what we can do rather than playing round with what's inside a computer'."

He believes the good natured "volatility" between the band members is another emotion they capture.

"It's not just four life-long pals sitting around patting each other's backs. There's serious arguments going into what should be in a song. I think it's good if somebody feels that passionate about something instead of doing the same thing because everyone's going to like it."

* Wayne Bennett (producer, DJ, musician and leader of British band Lotek Hifi) is at The Turnaround, tonight, at the Rising Sun on K Rd

* Lotek Hifi (mini album); Mixed Blessings (out in September)